Steven Seagal Sued Over A&E Reality Show Arrest

A Pheonix man says that "Steven Seagal: Lawman" orchestrated his capture for television.

Late-80s action movie star Steven Seagal made a slight comeback with his A&E reality show, Steven Seagal: Lawman. Now, a new lawsuit from a man who was arrested on the show is placing the actor back in the limelight.

On Tuesday, Phoenix resident Jesus Llovera filed a civil lawsuit against the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office and Seagal accusing them of manufacturing his 2011 arrest for television drama, according to AZCentral.com.

Llovera was on probation for a misdemeanor violation of being present at a cockfight. The Sheriff’s office suspected that he had roosters and chickens on his property, a violation of his probation. And, apparently, a job for Steven Seagal: Lawman.

According to court papers, the Sheriff’s office says its use of a tank, a bomb robot, and 40 deputies to storm Llovera’s home was a normal course of action.

They found more than 100 roosters on his property -- some had the marks of physical altering signifying they were bred for cockfighting, and found some medications and accessories that are used in cockfighting.

After the raid, Llovera was charged with raising animals for cockfighting and possession of dangerous drugs used on the animals.

While his attorney would like the court to throw out any evidence discovered on the grounds that the warrant was not served properly and argues that his client was not involved in cockfighting, he says the raid “was still overkill, and that’s the point.”

"The search warrant was going to occur with or without Seagal," sheriff's Deputy Chief Dave Trombi said before the lawsuit was filed. "The search warrant was not based at all on the needs of the production company."